iStock/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) -- What do cats really want? A group of international researchers decided to find out how the pets react to their owners by examining house cats in a variety of settings.

Basically, the scientists looked into the stress levels of felines that live alone, in pairs and in groups of three or four.

While cats are often described as enjoying their space, the team members said that cats that live alone, particularly those younger than 2, experience more stress when their owners pet them than cats in larger groups.

Professor Daniel Mills, professor of Veterinary Behavioral Medicine at the University of Lincoln in England, believes that receiving the undivided attention of a human seems to freak out cats living alone.

However, nervous cats that can stay in the background when their more human-tolerant buddies get the attention, appear more at ease.